SO hard for menswear to truly break out of its modern conservatism, where anything decorative, experimental, ostentatious gets a bad reaction. Until lots more guys go sartorially feral, the sober constraints will stay in place.

Cute boy!!!! It works for me. A bit odd, but i-D to a T! Great photo too! For some reason he looks like he is a little bit cold, and the sweater thing isn’t warm enough. But I don’t know why I think that.

The outfit is very fitting to i-D, and the socks and those shoes are just so boyish. I think many women would find him more interesting then a more perfectly dressed gent. Women really often don’t go for well dressed men, especially for a younger guy. The perfectly cut suit with pants that show the socks, the immaculately rolled sleeve and well fitting, ironed slacks are a bit too thought out for many women even if they are elegant and minimalist. Of course, other men really like it. Women can dress up all they want, even if guys don’t love it, they still won’t care. If such things matter to a person at all, that is.

I like the rhyme in this outfit: the glitter of the jacket, the glitter of the slacks, the glitter of the sandals and the white of the shirt and the socks.
Yes, I like it very much.
Greetings from a rainy Amsterdam. It never stops here.

To be honest – in eastern Europe this kind of mix – flip flops and socks always is unacceptable mix – everyone laugh of it… But this guy on your picture seems like a style Martian or an alien in a positive meaning of this word:)))))).

What a great take on the grandpa cardigan! I love it! I’m inspired to make something similar. I think this would be a more wearable outfit if he let that be the center of attention and everything else be understated–jeans, t-shirt, cool sneakers, lose the necklace. Right now he just looks like a modern pimp.

OMG Matthew Stone!!!! I’ve loved him and his photography for a few years. and the styling in his editorials—- just the epitome of great fashion. would be a serious wet dream to work for him. Love from Hong Kong!

Sandals and socks, don’t knock it ’till you’ve tried it. Great for weekend shopping in the city when you may not want your hooves hanging out. Liberate your lifestyle. Try something new. Thanks to those who posted the designer and the subject. Great to learn that stuff! Gotta grab my Birks and head out. hahahahaha

P.S. you can see how the late McQueen has inspired him. The ‘I don’t give a fu*k’ look on his face, to a point of almost anarchism. Colouring outside the lines, but still close enough that it’s attainable. Truly British.

having been a reader of i-D on and off since the eighties, this image almost feels nostalgic to me. So I’m finding it really surprising to see read down the comments and see how many people are ‘shocked’ by it. I’m surprised how conservative (with a small ‘c’) the Sartorialist readership are today. London style must be etched into me more deeply than I thought!

I’m with ali on this one – as someone who hung around in London quite a bit during the early/mid-eighties (AKA an “oldster” now), this is a nostalgic look for me. This kind of thing was fairly standard in the clubs back then. Judging by the majority of posts here, it’s depressing how much more conservative tastes have become. Anyone here heard of Ray Petri? (look him up). Hate to think what kind of reaction Liegh Bowry might get here…

belated comment, but facing the hate he got from everyone: I love everything about it – the attitude, the outfit, the pose – could never pull off the sandal/sock combination myself but i bet he handled it very well… just gorgeous…